


Raising a Professor

by CertainVICTORy



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Adventure, Alcohol, Blood, Child Byleth, Family Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, Spoilers, Violence, basically if Byleth was a 10 year old boy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-09
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:48:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24620326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CertainVICTORy/pseuds/CertainVICTORy
Summary: Jeralt is called upon the Church to teach at the monastery but what he doesn't realize that the biggest challenge he has to face is to raise his ten-year-old son at the same time!
Comments: 12
Kudos: 42





	1. Father and Son

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, JJ here! With this new project that I'll be working on from time to time! Updates will be whenever I can, so I hope you enjoy this little au!

Jeralt looked down at a letter that sat in front of him. He scratched his chin and stared out the window. He was eyeing the beautiful night sky. “Quiet night tonight, it seems,” He chuckled as he placed the letter back into his bag. He grabbed a cup of warm tea and smiled as the liquid washed away any aches he had from battle. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a pair of hands grabbed him from behind and covered his eyes.

“I got you now!” There was a small giggle that came from the pair of hands, “Guess who?”

“Byleth?” Jeralt let out a giant laugh as he turned around and saw his son, who smiled wide at him. “Weren’t you supposed to be sleeping, young man?” Jeralt crossed his arms as the young boy pouted and placed his hands behind his head.

“I couldn’t sleep! I had that dream about that person again!” Jeralt smiled and ruffled his son’s dark blue hair,

“Right, your imaginary friend? Sothis right? You sure have a big imagination for a little guy.” Byleth grabbed his father’s hands and held it,

“I’m not little, Papa! I’m ten! I’m a big boy now!” Byleth puffed his chest in front of his father and smiled as Jeralt lifted him into the air.

“That’s right; you’re my brave little warrior!” Byleth pouted again and tried to break free from his father’s grasp, but the older man was too powerful for him,

“Unhand me, you bandit! I’ll have you know that I’m the son of the greatest mercenary ever!” Byleth broke free from his father and climbed onto his back and sat on his shoulders. “You can’t get me from up here!” 

“Oh?” Jeralt lifted his arms, causing Byleth to topple over slowly. Jeralt ran to the bed as Byleth fell onto it, “Didn’t your father tell you that you should always keep your guard up? Now I have you!” Jeralt began tickling his son, causing the boy to cry out in a loud burst of laughter.

“Papa! Stop that tickles!” Byleth’s voice cracked as his father tickled him. Byleth stuck his hand out and pushed back his father and sat up. He let out a small yawn and rubbed his face,

“You tired, buddy?” Byleth gave a small nod and held his arms up,

“Can you carry me, Papa?” Jeralt nodded and cradled his son in his arms. He felt the tiny boy’s arms wrap around his chest as Byleth fell asleep. “I love you, Papa!”

“I love you too, son.” Jeralt laid Byleth down onto the bed and tucked him in. He then ruffled his son’s hair and softly smiled,  _ ‘You’ve gotten so big!’  _ Just then, there was a loud knock on the door,

“Sir Jeralt! We’ve got trouble!” One of the mercenaries of Jeralt’s group walked through the door in a huff.

“What seems to be the problem?” Jeralt waited for the mercenary to finish breathing before speaking,

“We’ve spotted some bandit activity by some nearby camp occupied by some students!” Jeralt nodded and walked over to his lance,

“I’ll be over there in a sec, get the troops ready!”

“Papa?” Jeralt froze as a tiny voice appeared from behind him. He turned around and saw Byleth, looking up at him, “Are you leaving again?” Jeralt crouched down and ruffled his son’s hair,

“Hey, bud. Papa is just leaving for a little; I’ll be back, okay? I’ll leave some of the guys here to watch over you!” Byleth hugged his father tightly and buried his face into his chest.

“Don’t go, what if you don’t come back like mama?” Jeralt froze, as his son mentioned his mother. He bit his lip and massaged Byleth’s head,

“I’ll come back like I always do, but you must promise that you’d stay here and be safe, okay?” Byleth nodded and watched as his father walk away. 

“Be safe, Papa! Can you bring me a sword like you promised?” Jeralt chuckled and nodded,

“Of course, I’ll be sure to clean off the blood for you!” Byleth’s eyes lit up as he waved his father goodbye. He ran towards the window and watched his father’s mercenaries get ready for the trip. He grinned and ran behind the back window before grabbing a black cape and crawled outside.

_ ‘Hehe, I want to see Papa in action!’  _ He giggled and looked around the campgrounds and hide inside the nearby bushes as a mercenary patrolled around. He threw the hood over his face and darted around the grounds before walking upon the carriage of supplies.

_ ‘Perfect!’  _ Byleth smiled wide as he slowly climbed inside.

“Is that everything?” Jeralt’s voice boomed into the night as his mercenaries shouted in agreement. “Good, then let’s ride!” The horse’s cries echoed through the night as they all headed towards the intended destination. Byleth poked his head out of the carriage and smiled as he saw his father’s serious face, commanding his gang.

“I can’t wait to see Papa fight off those mean bandits!” Byleth yawned as his eyes felt heavy, and he slowly drifted off.

* * *

There stood a throne made of stone...Byleth walked closer towards it as if it was calling to him and watched as a girl appeared, out of thin air. She had long green hair and green eyes. On her body, was a dark purple gown, stitched with gold fabric that ran past her legs. She smiled and rested her chin on her hand.

“You again?” Byleth wondered, “Why do I keep seeing you?”

“Your guess is as good as mine, child!” Byleth scoffed and rolled his eyes,

“Child? You’re no older than me!” Suddenly the girl floated over and smacked him on the head,

“You do well to respect me, boy! But I too wonder why we are fated to meet, perhaps you and I share a greater destiny than we can imagine.”

“Destiny? Like one of those books, Papa likes to read me?” The girl nodded and floated back to her throne,

“How strange that a mere child can be here, somehow you feel like a stranger and someone familiar to me...I wonder what future lies in store for you.” The girl stood up and floated around Byleth, “Tell me, what is your name, boy?”

“I’m Byleth! What’s yours?” The girl opened her mouth but froze as she pondered slightly,

“I, I do not remember.”

“What? You don’t remember your own name? That’s silly.” Byleth let out a laugh but was interrupted when the girl hit him over the head,

“Hush, you! I may not remember my name, but I do remember that you and I are perhaps connected in someway! Don’t you feel it too?” Byleth nodded and rubbed his head,

“Kinda? But can I got back to see my Papa now?” The girl scoffed and shook her head,

  
“Do what you must...I shall be watching over you...like  _ always’ _ she trailed off and tilted her head,  _ ‘always?’  _


	2. Changing Fate

Byleth awoke to the sound of his father’s shouting from a distance. He peered from the carriage to find his father talking with three people that looked a bit older than Byleth but younger than Jeralt. They were dressed in black, frilly uniforms with red, blue, and yellow capes, respectively. _‘I wonder who those guys are?’_ Byleth wondered as he listened carefully,

“We apologize for calling you here,” The one in the blue cape had short blond hair, he bowed to Jeralt and shook his head, “Had the situation weren’t so dire, we wouldn’t have bothered you.” Jeralt crossed his arms and pondered,

“Of all places, how’d bandits get here?” A girl in white hair spoke next,

“It’s true. They pursued us while we were resting at our camp.”

“Not to mention that we are separated from our companions,” The man in the yellow cape furrowed his brows and shrugged, “They are after our blood and our gold.” Jeralt laughed and looked at the three teens,

“I’m surprised that you can remain calm in this situation...but,” He looked at them carefully and raised his brow, “Those uniforms, could it be?”

“Sir! The bandits have been spotted outside the forest!” A mercenary ran towards the group and saluted,

“Looks like they followed you all the way over here, let’s get a move on!” Jeralt barked orders, and the mercenaries got into position. 

_‘Now’s my chance to see Papa up close!’_ Byleth crawled out of the carriage and stopped. He reached inside and grabbed an iron sword and tied it around his waist. _‘You may never know when you could use this!’_ He smiled and hid along with the bushes, keeping a close eye on his father.

Byleth smiled wide as his father struck down a bandit with ease. _‘Papa is so cool!’_ He looked over at the three teens and saw that they used weapons that the mercenaries use. _‘So they can fight too?’_ The one in blue dodged an attack from a bandit and struck them down with his spear. Suddenly more bandits jumped from behind him and attacked,

“Heads up, Dimitri!” The one in yellow shouted as he shot arrows from afar, defeating the bandits. Dimitri cracked a smile and laughed,

“Thank you, Claude, but who’s gonna save you!” He threw his spear towards Claude, which bounced off of a nearby bandits helmet that tried to attack Claude. He shook his head and chuckled,

“I had him!”

“Would you two be a bit more serious!” The girl in white shouted as she cut down a few bandits with her axe. “We are in a real battle! Our lives are at stake!” Claude smiled and stuck his tongue out at her,

“Excuse us, Edelgard; we are just comrades; that’s all. There’s nothing wrong with having a little fun here.” Edelgard scoffed and walked up to them,

“Always wanting to play around, if you took things more seriously, we wouldn’t be in this mess!” Dimitri grabbed her shoulder and tried to diffuse the situation,

“Now, now, let’s all calm down!” 

“HEY!” Jeralt’s voice shot out through the night, causing the trio to freeze, “If you lot have time to talk, then you should have time to get a move on! We are close to driving the bandits back!” The trio nodded and pressed forward their advance.

_‘I’m glad I won’t have to deal with those three, they sound like a lot of trouble!’_ Byleth darted closer towards a nearby tree and spotted Jeralt, jumping off his horse.

“Sir, the bandits are running!”

“Good work! Now let’s make sure everyone is safe!” Jeralt commanded the mercenaries to fan out as he walked towards the trio. Byleth nodded and giggled to himself,

_‘Papa is so cool! I better get back to the carriage before he spots me!’_ Just then, Byleth spotted a small glimmer from a distance. His eyes widened as he saw an enemy archer pull back an arrow and shoot it towards Jeralt. Without thinking, Byleth ran out towards Jeralt. “Papa, look out!” He dove in front of the arrow and closed his eyes as it got close to his chest.

* * *

“I can’t believe you!” Byleth heard the familiar voice of the girl and opened his eyes to see that he was back in the darkroom. He turned around and saw the girl shaking her head. “You can’t just be going around, throwing your life around like that! It’s like you’re trying to get me killed!” She huffed and relaxed her body before shifting around her throne. “Well, it’s okay. After all, you don’t know the value of your own life. If you aren’t gonna, protect it well, then I guess it’s my time to guide you!” She floated around Byleth and smiled, “You can call me Sothis, but I’m also known as ‘The Begining!’” She paused and pondered a bit, “Sothis, yes, I am Sothis. But also known as ‘The Begining,’ I wonder who called me that?”

“Sothis?” Byleth wondered, “Did you finally remember your name?” 

“Of course, I did, you little runt. It’s just; I wasn’t able to recall my name until now, it just came to me.” Byleth touched his chest to look for the wound, but his shirt came clean.

“Did you just save me?” Sothis laughed and floated around him,

“You really need to catch on faster if you wanna make it far in this world. I have stalled the passage of time; otherwise, you would’ve died in front of your father.” Byleth shook his head and stammered,

“But I didn’t want him to die! I...just…wanted to see him be a hero,”

“And you wanted to be one too, so you just instinctively jumped forward without a plan. That’s really smart of you.” Sothis scoffed and rested her chin on Byleth’s head, “Still, I did deem you worthy of saving. I still wonder how I’m able to stop time.”

“So, Sothis...what happens now? Can’t you just resume time like normal?” Sothis shook her head,

“If I did, what would happen?” Byleth pondered, and then his eye’s widened,

“The arrow would kill me!”

“That’s correct, young one!”

“Then, what can we do? I don’t want to stay here! I don’t want to die either!” Byleth began to cry as he hugged himself, “I just want to see my Papa…” His tears dripping down his face and onto the ground as his voice echoed through the darkroom.

“Hush, now, little one.” Sothis ruffled Byleth’s hair and winked at him, “You’re supposed to be your Papa’s ‘Brave little warrior!’ I’m sure you can figure something out!” She pocked his forehead and smiled, “Use that brain of yours squirt.” Byleth wiped his face and looked up at Sothis,

“You think you could turn back time? Maybe I can protect him better if I did!” Sothis’ eyes widened as she floated up,

“Yes, of course! Turn back the hands of time!” She placed her hand forward, revealing a gold symbol in front of Byleth. “You are quite troublesome, I can’t go too far, but it should be enough for you to take action.” Byleth stood up and nodded,

“I’ll do my best!” Sothis nodded and pressed her hand towards the seal,

“Now, go...Yes, you who bear the flames within. Drift through the flow of time to find the answers you seek...use it to shape your future.” A bright flash of light, surged around Byleth as Sothis began to dissipate from view.

_‘I’ll be watching over you, as always!’_

* * *

Byleth awoke to the same area he was before he spotted the archer. _‘Did it work?’_ He wondered as he spotted Jeralt walking towards the trio. Byleth spotted the glimmer and ran towards his father.

“Papa! Watch out!” He took out his sword and deflected the arrow as it shot towards his father.

“Byleth? What are you-” Jeralt saw the arrow on the ground and looked over towards the bandit.

“I got this one.” Claude notched his bow and shot towards the bandit and smiled as he looked down at Byleth.

“Byleth Eisner!” Jeralt picked up his son by the back of his tunic and shook his head, “Do you have any idea what time it is? Why are you even here? I thought I told you to stay back at the cottage.” Byleth sank his head and looked to the ground,

“I’m sorry, Papa. I just wanted to see you be a hero and stuff, I was just gonna watch, but then I saw the arrow and got scared that you’d…” Byleth began to sniffle as his face dripped from tears. “I didn’t want you to disappear!” Jeralt sighed and hugged Byleth and massaged his head,

“There, there, I’m sorry I yelled at you. But you should’ve followed orders and stayed back. I wouldn’t know what to do if you got yourself hurt. Truth be told, I got scared when I saw you jump in front of me.” Byleth wiped his nose and giggled,

“You got scared? That’s funny, Papa!” Byleth laughed as Jeralt held him by the arms,

“Yes, I get scared too! Cause I love you, my son.”

“I love you too, Papa!” Byleth hugged Jeralt and jumped down from his arms and looked over at the trio.

“That’s some good eye you got there, kiddo!” Claude stuck out his hand towards Byleth, but the boy hid behind Jeralt. 

“Looks like the Claude charm doesn’t work on small children.” Dimitri laughed as he crouched down. “Hey there, that was really brave of you to save your father!”

“You think so?” Byleth peered from Jeralt’s legs as Dimitri nodded,

“Of course! I’m sure you’d make a fine warrior like your father one day!” Byleth smiled and puffed his chest out.

“My Papa is the greatest person ever! I wanna be just like him when I grow up!” Dimitri laughed and placed a hand on Byleth’s head,

“You’re well on your way!”

“Dimitri’s a natural at this.” Edelgard laughed at Claude, who began to pout.

“Low blow…” Just then, they heard shouting in the distance.

“Alright, you bandit fiends! The Knights of Seiros have arrived!” A knight ran forward toward the group.

“Oh, no.” Jeralt placed a palm on his face and shook his head. The knight smiled wide as he saw Jeralt.

“Captain, Jeralt? Is it you!” The knight bellowed loudly that shook Byleth’s body. “Don’t you recognize me? It’s me! Alois, your right-hand man! At least that’s what I like to call myself! It must have been ages since you disappeared, but I always knew you’d be alive!”

“You haven’t changed a bit, Alois. Still just loud as ever, and drop the ‘captain’ title, I’m not your captain anymore. I’m just a wandering mercenary now, so we must be going.” Alois shook his head and stood in front of Jeralt.

“Wait, this isn’t how it ends! You should head back to the monastery with me!” Jeralt sighed loudly,

“Garreg Mach Monastery, I suppose it was inevitable.” Byleth looked up at Jeralt, who ruffled his son’s hair.

“Oh, who’s this little one?” Byleth hid behind Jeralt’s leg and whispered,

“I’m, Byleth…” Alois laughed and picked Byleth up,

“My my aren’t you an adorable kid! Are you Jeralt’s son? You must come to the monastery with him then! You’re gonna love it!” Just then Byleth began to sniffle,

“Papa! This man is scary!” Jeralt grunted and pulled Byleth out of Alois’ arms.

“I suggest you don’t grab my son so barbarically.” Jeralt cradled Byleth in his arms and shook his head, “You were never good with children.”

“I see, well, the offer still stands! What do you say, Jeralt? It would be safe to have your son in the monastery.” Jeralt looked down at his son, who slowly nodded off in his arms.

“I suppose we don’t have a choice.” He held Byleth in his arms and smiled as Byleth nuzzled his face in his father’s body. 

“Papa, I love you…”

  
“I love you too, Byleth.” Jeralt walked towards the carriage and chuckled to himself, _‘I’d sacrifice anything for you, Byleth.’_


	3. Garreg Mach Monastery

“Come on, Jeralt! Can I at least try to hold him?” Alois tried to reach for Byleth, who was sleeping in his father’s arms, but Jeralt pulled away.

“Not happening, Byleth gets really upset if you wake him up.” Jeralt smiled and brushed back his son’s hair as the group walked along the forest.

“He’s got a strong head on his shoulders! It must’ve been hard raising a child as a mercenary!” Dimitri watched as Byleth nuzzled his face in his father’s chest, letting out a small noise as he slept.

“It was at first, but he’s a good kid. A bit excitable, but I did teach him everything I know, in regards to self-defense. He is a child, after all.” Jeralt smiled as Byleth fluttered his eyes open and rubbed his face. “Good morning, kiddo. Did you sleep well?” Byleth nodded and stretched,

“I did! I had this amazing dream where I saw a massive battle between to armies! This lady went up and stabbed this big scary guy! She kind of reminded me of Sothis!”

“Sothis?” Edelgard looked over at the boy and raised her brow, “Who’s that?”

“She’s my protector! She watches over me when Papa isn’t around!” Byleth giggled as he climbed onto Jeralt’s shoulders and looked around, “Where are we going?”

“Don’t mind, Byleth, you three. He has a big imagination; apparently, he has an imaginary friend that watches over him.” Byleth pulled at Jeralt’s hair and pouted,

“She is real! She can turn back time too! I’ll show you!” Byleth thrust his hand forward and grunted as he was squinting his eyes. Jeralt chuckled as the son panted heavily.

“That’s some power there, kiddo.” Byleth blushed as he rested his chin on his father’s head,

“Someday, you’ll believe me…” Claude laughed and looked up at Byleth.

“Anyways, little man, to answer your other question, we are heading to Garreg Mach Monastery! Basically, Fodlan, in a nutshell!” 

“What do you guys do there?”

“Well, it’s an officers academy some students learn to become knights or lords. It’s a very prestigious school!”

“Preestigus?” Jeralt laughed as his son tried to pronounce the word,

“It means it’s very fancy and expensive, kiddo.” Byleth tilted his head and pursed his lips,

“Fancy like those people that hire you, Papa?” Jeralt nodded,

“Yeah, something like that.”

“I don’t like those people! They are rude to you sometimes!” Dimitri chuckled and shook his head,

“Oh, don’t worry, little one! These are good people; you don’t have to worry about a thing.” Byleth then loomed over Jeralt’s face and pouted,

“You’re not gonna send me there, are you? Is it cause I snuck out?” Jeralt lifted Byleth from his shoulders and shook his head,

“Of course not, I’d never leave you, Byleth.”

“Then why are we going?” Jeralt looked over at Alois and sighed,

“I have a debt that I owe to the Archbishop, but don’t worry; we are just visiting.”

“What happened back then, Papa?” 

“I’ll tell you when you’re older.” Byleth crossed his arms and pouted,

“No fair!” He flailed a bit before jumping down and running around the three students. “So, what’s there to do at the monastery?” Claude smiled and raised his arms,

“Lot’s of things, you can read, study, eat good food, use weapons, learn how to fight! All that jazz.” Byleth’s eyes lit up as he heard Claude speak,

“Papa, can you teach me how to fight?” Jeralt shook his head and placed his hands on his hips.

“Absolutely not, young man!” Byleth froze and stood back in shock,

“But why not? You let me use some weapons!” 

“I said, no!” Jeralt’s voice boomed towards Byleth, causing him to freeze up. He teared up and started to sniffle. Jeralt sighed and scratched the back of his head. “Byleth, I’m sorry,” He crouched down and stared at his son. “Remember back there when you almost saw me got hurt?”

“Uh, huh.” Byleth wiped his face as he stared back at Jeralt.

“Well, I don’t want you to get hurt either. I only teach you those things so you can protect yourself if I’m not here or if I-” Byleth jumped into Jeralt’s arms and hugged him,

“Don’t ever say that! You’re my Papa, and I don’t want you to leave me alone!” Jeralt nodded and hugged him back.

“You’re right, how stupid of me. But tell you what, if you’re a good boy, I’ll teach you a thing or two so you can take down Alois.” Jeralt smirked as the knight threw his hands back.

“I think I can take him, Papa!” Byleth giggled as Alois pouted at Jeralt.

“That’s my boy!” Jeralt stood up and held out his hand, “So what do you wanna learn about first?”

“Teach me how to use an axe!” Jeralt chuckled as the pair continued to walk.

“I think we should stick with a sword.”

“Alright!”

* * *

Byleth’s eyes lit up as he saw the massive monastery, come into view. He looked up at the sky and pointed at the flying pegasus, “Papa, look! Aren’t they cool?”

“Yeah, and before you ask, no, I’m not gonna teach you to ride them, not yet at least.” Byleth groaned and continued walking with the knights. Byleth looked around the monastery and waved upon passing some students.

“It seems nice around here, Papa!” He looked up and saw that his father was looking up. “Papa?”

“Rhea is here.” Jeralt tightened his grip on Byleth’s hand, causing the boy to yelp. “Oh, sorry, son. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, but are you okay, Papa?” Jeralt nodded and stared at a woman in green hair who fixated her gaze on Byleth.

“I wonder if the flow of time brought you here? She smiled and walked back inside.

Byleth and Jeralt walked into the church and waited. Jeralt sighed and looked towards the church walls, “To think I’d ever come back here, and to see Lady Rhea again.”

“Papa, who’s Lady Rhea?” Jeralt looked down and rolled his eyes,

“She’s the Archbishop of this place; she’s kinda a big deal around her. Best be on your best behavior.” Byleth nodded and puffed up his chest as Rhea walked by, along with a man with green hair.

“I apologize for the wait, Sir Jeralt. I am Seteth, the Archbishop’s advisor.”

“Right. Hello.” Jeralt bowed towards Seteth. Byleth, watching his father, nodded as well. Rhea smiled,

“It’s been a long time, Jeralt. I wonder...was it the will of the goddess that allowed us to meet again?” Jeralt bowed again to Rhea,

“You must forgive my silence. A lot has happened in the past few years.” Rhea looked down at Byleth and smiled. Byleth locked eyes with her and felt a sudden chill up his spine. He quickly hid behind Jeralt and hugged his legs.

“I see, is this your child, Sir Jeralt?” Rhea mused as Byleth pocked his head from behind his father, “He certainly has your eyes.” Jeralt ruffled Byleth’s head and nodded,

“Yes, he was born after I left. I wish I could’ve introduced you to his mother, but she died of an illness.”

“I see, I offer my condolences to you both. I’ve heard of your exploits from Alois. What is your name, little one?” Byleth froze as she smiled at him. 

“It’s okay, son.” Jeralt patted the top of Byleth’s head in reassurance.

“I’m....Byleth. It’s nice to meet you.” Rhea laughed as the boy began to blush,

“What a gentleman! I think you’ll like it here. We can’t thank you enough for rescuing the students here. And can’t wait to get to know you both more.” Byleth gripped his father’s armor and looked up at him.

“Papa, what does she mean? Didn’t you say we were just visiting?” Rhea raised her brow and stared at Jeralt.

“Oh, you haven’t told him?” Jeralt picked Byleth up and held him in his arms.

“Tell me what, Papa?” Jeralt sighed and looked Byleth in the eye.

“They want us to teach the students here.”


	4. Meeting of Professors

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm so so so sorry for not updating this! I just had a lot to do and I wanted to focus on my Pokemon fanfics! Thanks so much for being patient!!

“They want us to teach the students?” Byleth tilted his head and began to laugh out loud. “Papa, that’s so funny!” Jeralt sighed and shook his head,

“I’m serious, kiddo.” Byleth stopped laughing and stared at his father.

“What??? Papa, are you crazy?” Jeralt watched as Byleth flailed around, trying to break free of his father’s grasp. Byleth jumped down and tugged at Jeralt’s arm. “Let’s go, Papa! I don’t want you to go teaching other people!”

“Wait!” Rhea cried out, “What if I told you that we teach combat here as well?” Byleth froze and turned his head.

“You mean like weapons and stuff?” Rhea nodded at the boy as he crossed his arms. Jeralt put a hand on his forehead and shook his head.

“Kiddo, you don’t have to-” Byleth stuck his hand out and waved his finger,

“No, no, the scary lady does make a point!” Seteth dropped his jaw and pointed at the child

“Scary? I’ll have you know that Lady Rhea is the kindest and forgiving! I won’t stand here and let a brat-” Byleth glared at Seteth and pointed back,

“Brat? I’m the son of Jeralt! The greatest mercenary ever! I won’t let some old man talk to me like that!” 

“Old man? Why you-”

“Seteth, relax.” Rhea laughed as she walked over to Byleth, “Forgive the old man, but as I was saying. Yes, we do train our students to use weapons and stuff. Even magic!” Byleth’s eyes lit up as he looked up at the pope.

“Magic? You think I can learn magic?” Rhea nodded and ruffled his head.

“Of course, if your father allows it?” She looked up at him with a smile. “You have no objections, do you, Jeralt?” Jeralt grunted and pulled Byleth aside.

“Kiddo, are you sure you want to do this?”

“Magic, dad! You guys never got to learn that stuff much!”

“Yeah, but something doesn’t sit right with me about all this.”

“Papa, I want to learn and get stronger so I can protect you too!” Byleth hugged Jeralt’s body and held him tightly. “Please?” Jeralt sighed and ruffled his son’s hair.

“Alright, but any signs of trouble, you’ll come to me, alright?” Byleth took his father’s hand and pulled him towards Lady Rhea.

“We accept your offer!” She clapped her hands and smiled,

“Oh, joyous! We will get you both situated for you to teach tomorrow! For now, Seteth, do you mind giving these two a tour?” Seteth bowed as she walked away.

“Of course, Lady Rhea. This way, please.” Seteth walked out towards the courtyard while Byleth and Jeralt followed suit. The boy looked up at his father and tilted his head.

“Papa?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, why do you ask, kiddo?”

“Well, you’re making that face that you always make when something is bothering ya!” Jeralt looked down at Byleth, who straightened his face and scowled.

“I’m Jeralt, and I’m angry all the time, but I love my son even though I don’t let other people hear it cause I have an image to keep, ARGGGH!” Jeralt chuckled and lifted Byleth into his arms.

“You really think that about me?”

“Not really, I just saw the other mercenaries say it a bunch!” Jeralt raised a brow and looked back towards the stables.

“Did they now? Guess I’ll have a stern talking to them later.”

“Are they in trouble, Papa?”

“They will be, let’s say that you don’t have to do your own laundry for a few days now.” Byleth smiled wide and climbed onto Jeralt’s shoulders and pointed towards Seteth.

“Follow the old man, Papa!” 

“Haha, of course!”

The trio walked past a few rooms just outside of Rhea’s chambers. Byleth took note of the small rooms that had books and other supplies, lying about,

“This is the professors’ living quarters. Here, you will do your personal studying and sleeping here.” 

“Do we get a big room?” Byleth looked down at Jeralt and looked over at Seteth who nodded,

“Of course, we have a big spare room enough to accommodate you both. Now let’s continue forward.” Just then there was a loud explosion from a nearby room. The trio ran towards it and saw a man in a brown coat, covered in soot and dust. “Are you okay, Hanneman?”

“Yes, quite. I’m afraid today’s experiment was a bit unruly.” Hanneman fixed his coat and adjusted his glasses.

“Well, please be mindful of your experiments, we don’t want to cause any more property damage, again!”

“What are you experimenting on?” Byleth asked, causing the older man to fixate on the boy.

“I’m studying about crests and how I can make them easy for people to obtain!”

“Crests? What’s that, Papa?” Jeralt groaned and shook his head.

“It’s best that you don’t know, kiddo.”

“But, I wanna know!” Hanneman laughed and pushed up his glasses.

“Crest are believed to blessings by the Goddesses! They grant special powers to those who have them! Like high aptitude for magic, enhanced strength, and other boons that give them an edge over others!” Byleth’s eyes lit up as the older man spoke.

“So, I could have one then?” Hanneman shook his head,

“Unfortunately not! Crests are inherited by blood, and you can only obtain one if let’s say a family member had one.” Byleth looked down at Jeralt and touched his face.

“Papa, do you have one?”

“Byleth, it’s hard enough with you on my shoulders, let go.” Jeralt brushed his face and shook his head, “No, I don’t have a crest.” 

“Awww.” Byleth leaned his chin on his father’s head and groaned, “I was hoping I’d have one too!” Hanneman chuckled and grinned at the boy.

“That’s where I come in! You see, with my experiments, I can give crests to people who want them! But for now, I’m collecting and studying more crests!”

“Anything I can do to help?” Byleth wondered.

“Well, we can have you test it out if you want!”

“Okay!” Byleth jumped down from his father’s shoulder and ran over to Hanneman.

“Wait, Byleth!” Jeralt grabbed his son’s arm and shook his head, “It could be dangerous! What if you got hurt?” Hanneman shook his head and pointed at the circle on the floor.

“Rest assured, it’s a safe procedure; all Byleth has to do is to hold his arm out over the rune, and it will do the rest!” Jeralt looked down at Byleth, who nodded his head.

“I’ll be okay, Papa! Besides, we’ve been through worse!”

“Okay, but I’m watching you, Hanneman!” Jeralt pointed at the man who nodded,

“Don’t worry; I will not harm a single hair on the boy.” He watched Byleth walk up to the rune and held his arm out.

“So do I just wait, or-?” Just then, the rune began to shimmer. A bright light flashed in the room as a mysterious marking, appeared in front of Byleth.

“Is this a crest?” Byleth asked as he saw the markings slowly disappear. Hanneman adjusted his glasses and stared at Byleth.

“Amazing, I’ve never seen such a crest before!” Byleth’s eyes lit up as he stared at the professor.

“I have one! That’s so cool! Papa, did you see that? I have a crest!” Jeralt smiled as his son ran towards him.

“That’s great, Byleth!” Just then, Hanneman ran over to the boy and grabbed his shoulders.

“Young Byleth please, you must let me study you!”

“Study me?” Byleth watched as the man brought out a variety of tools.

“Yes, some DNA tests like some hair, skin, or blood will do!” He got out a knife and held it up. Byleth began to whimper and ran past Jeralt and out the door.

“Byleth! Wait!” Jeralt turned around and grabbed Hanneman by the collar. “What is wrong with you? He’s just a child!” Seteth grabbed Jeralt’s arm and pulled him back.

“Sir, Jearlt, please calm down! Mr. Hanneman didn’t mean any harm!”

“Any harm? The man pulled a knife on my son! Byleth!” He ran out of the room and looked around. “Byleth, where are you, kiddo?” He looked down the hall and saw Byleth crying on the ground. “Byleth!” He ran over to his son and held him up, “Are you okay?”

“Papa...I hurt my arm!” Byleth teared up as he showed his father the bruise. Jeralt hugged him and carried him in his arms.

“There, there, my little warrior. Let’s see if we can take you to the school infirmary.” Byleth wiped his face and held his face close to Jeralt.

“Papa, it hurts!”

“I know, but you’re with me now, so it’s okay.” Seteth ran towards the pair and bowed to them.

“I’m so sorry for the actions of Hanneman, he means well, but he gets a little too, excited in regards to crest.”

“You can save the apologies for later, now where’s the school nurse?” Seteth looked up and nodded.

“Right this way.” He brought them to a small office where a woman in a slightly scantily clad outfit sat. She turned around and smiled.

“My, my to what do I owe the pleasure?” Jeralt looked around and sat Byleth on the bed.

“I’m looking for the school doctor; my son is injured.” She stood up and walked over to the boy.

“Hmm, it looks like he has a small bruise on his arm, but nothing a little healing magic can’t fix!” Byleth wiped his face as he looked up at the woman.

“Are you a doctor?” She nodded,

“Why, yes! I’m Manuela, professor, and school nurse, at your service! Now, be a dear and hold out your arm, and you’ll be fixed up quite as new!” Byleth nodded and held out his arm as Manuela held out her hand and a green light, covered his arm. “Now, that’s better! How do you feel?”

“Better, thank you, Ms. Manuela!” He smiled as Jeralt sat down next to him and ruffled his hair.

“You gonna be okay, kiddo?” Byleth nodded and rested his head on Jeralt’s lap.

“I’m a little tired, can I sleep a bit, Papa?”

“Okay, but we should finish the tour as well, come on.” He picked Byleth up into his arms and carried him out the door. He patted his son’s back and bit his lip.

_ ‘Damn that Rhea!’  _


	5. The Black Eagles

“This is the corridor which leads to the church portion of the monastery, there that’s where people go to pray or do choir lessons.” Seteth continued to walk towards it, but Jeralt shook his head.

“Seteth, you don’t have to do the tour for my sake, since I already know my way around.”

“Then, it was just for the boy?” Seteth looked over at Byleth, who began to drool on his father’s armor. “Is he gonna be alright?” Jeralt chuckled as he shifted Byleth to the other side of him.

“He gets exhausted pretty easily; he has a lot of energy, which is nice at times during my mercenary work.”

“You must care a lot about your son.” Jeralt watched as Byleth started to suck his thumb and bury his face into his father’s chest.

“He’s all I have left. Raising him while also being a mercenary is tough work, but seeing his smiling face makes everything well worth it.” Byleth stirred and stretched and looked up at Jeralt.

“Hi, Papa!”

“Hey, kiddo, did you nap, alright?” Byleth jumped down and hugged Jeralt’s leg and nodded,

“Yeah! Although your armor is so uncomfortable!” Jeralt knelt down and laughed as he brushed the drool off of Byleth’s face.

“How about later we can go to the bathhouse. It’s been a while since we got you cleaned up!” Byleth pursed his lips and shook his head.

“You’ll have to catch me first!” The boy giggled as he ran down the halls and out towards the house rooms. Jeralt stood up and ran after Byleth, a small smile on his face.

“Alright, then, you think you can run away from me? I’m a mercenary!” Byleth looked back and grinned,

“You’re still a little old, Papa!”

“Old? Oh, someone’s gonna get it!” Jeralt laughed, but his face changed when Byleth fell to the ground as he bumped into someone. 

“Oww!” Byleth rubbed his head and looked up as a man in black hair turned around and glared at him.

“Oh, I guess now they are letting children roam around in here?” He looked down at Byleth and raised a brow, “Are you lost? You don’t belong here.” Byleth froze as the man’s gaze sent shivers up his spine.

“Byleth!” Jeralt ran over to his son and lifted him in his arms. “You okay, buddy?” Byleth shook his head and hid his face from the man.

“That man is scary….” Jeralt looked over and bowed to the man.

“Sorry about my son, he gets a little too excited.” Just as he was apologizing, Jeralt saw Edlegard appear from the classroom.

“Oh, you’re finally here!” She walked up to the pair and smiled. “I wanted to thank you guys for saving us back there! I see you’ve met Hubert!” Hubert bowed to Jeralt.

“I apologize for my earlier rudeness; I didn’t realize that you were the saviors of my lady Eldelgard. I humbly thank you.” Jeralt laughed and shook his head.

“Pleasure is all mine. Now, Byleth, do you have something to say to the nice man?”

“That he’s scary and he should smile more?” Byleth crossed his arms and tilted his head as Hubert raised a brow at the boy. Eldelgard covered her mouth as she tried to hide from laughing.

“Byleth!” Jeralt shook his head as his son stared at him.

“What? It’s true! That man’s face is scary! Like this!” Byleth changed his face and scowled heavily, “Grr, I’m scary, and I like to scare children!” Edelgard burst out in a fit of laughter as she wiped the tears from her face.

“Oh, man Hubert, he got you good.” Hubert frowned and glared at Byleth.

“I do hope you know; you’ve made a powerful enemy, boy.”

“Hubert, he’s just a kid.” Edelgard shooed him away and turned back towards Jeralt. “So, what brings you both here?” Byleth jumped down from his father’s arms and puffed out his chest.

“Papa and I are going to be teachers here!” 

“Wait, really?” Edelgard looked up at Jeralt, who reluctantly nodded.

“Yes, that’s true. Lady Rhea asked us to teach around here.” Edelgard put her hands on her hips and smiled.

“Have you guys decided on which house to teach?” Byleth shrugged and looked up at Jeralt, who shook his head.

“We have not, but that’s what the tour is for.” Edelgard nodded and pointed towards the Black Eagles classroom.

“Well, as you know, we are the Black Eagles. We all hail from the Adrestian Empire, which is in the southern region of Fódlan.” There she led them inside and pointed towards a few students who were studying or chatting. “Everyone!” Edelgard spoke up and gestured towards Byleth and Jeralt. “This is our new Professors, and I’d like to give them a nice warm welcome.”

“Oh, a new Professor? About time, I was getting a bit annoyed at Hanneman’s experiments.” A girl in brown hair waved at Jeralt and walked up to them. “Are you guys from around here?”

“This is Dorothea, don’t let her looks fool you, she’s quite the adept mage.” Dorothea smiled and winked at Byleth, who stared at her.

“You have pretty hair!” Dorothea smiled and blushed.

“My, aren’t you a charmer! If only you were older and richer.” Jeralt cleared his throat and picked Byleth up in his arms.

“We used to be mercenaries for hire, but not anymore.”

“Mercenaries?” A young man in cyan-colored hair ran up and smiled at Jeralt. “So, you get to beat up guys, right?” Edelgard shook her head as the young man crossed his arms.

“This is Caspar, he’s a bit of a hothead, but he’s pretty courageous.” Caspar smiled as he pointed to himself.

“Caspar, at your service! If you need something punched or moved, I’m your guy!” Byleth giggled and whispered in his father’s ear.

“He’s kind of short, don’t ya think?”

“Byleth, you’re short too.” Jeralt laughed as he spotted a girl in purple hair who hid behind a pillar. He walked over and tapped her on the shoulder, causing her to shriek.

“Gah! Don’t hurt me! I’m sorry!” She ran off in a hurry, leaving Jeralt confused.

“I’m sorry about Bernadetta; she’s a bit timid around others.”

“A bit?” Jeralt looked at Byleth, who shrugged at his father. Byleth then spotted a man sleeping on the table and pointed at him.

“Is he dead?” Edelgard laughed and shook her head.

“No, that’s just Lindhardt.” She walked over and tried to shake him awake. “Get up, you lazy oaf! We have new people to greet!” He yawned and stared at Byleth and Jeralt.

“Whatever, I’m too tired for this. Leave me be!” He waved his hand away, causing Edelgard to shake her head. She then pointed towards a girl in magenta hair who was talking with Dorothea. “That’s Petra; she’s pretty good at hunting who’s also an exchange student.”

“Greetings, I’m Petra, a Black Eagles student. No, a student of the Black Eagles.” She bowed and continued on her conversation with Dorothea.

“Okay!” Edelgard clapped her hands and nodded, “I think that’s everyone-”

“Edelgard!” A voice shot out from the end of the classroom as a man with orange hair ran up to her.

“Oh, right...hello there, Ferdinand.”

“You still haven’t accepted my duel against you!” She sighed and shook her head.

“Not now, can’t you see I’m introducing our new Professors to the class?”

“Where? I only see one?” He looked at Byleth, who waved at him. “Wait, you’re gonna be a teacher too, little guy?” Byleth nodded and puffed out his chest.

“Yep! My Papa and I are gonna teach here, so show some respect to me!” Ferdinand laughed and bowed towards the boy.

“Forgive my rudeness, then Professor Byleth. I’m Ferdinand Von Aegir, and can’t wait for you to teach us.” Jeralt cleared his throat and shook his head.

“We haven’t decided that yet, but I thank you for the tour.” Jeralt walked outside and looked over at Byleth. “So, what do you think?”

“They seem interesting, not too bad!” Byleth climbed onto Jeralt’s shoulders and looked down at him. “Let’s see all the other houses too, Papa!”

“Alright, but no more making fun of people’s appearances, that’s still very rude.”

“Even if it’s true?” Jeralt chuckled and nodded.

“Yeah, even if it is true.” With that, they headed towards the next house.


	6. update

Hey guys Vic here! I wanna drop by and apologize for not updating this fanfic! Lots of stuff went on in my life and i lost interest! But i assure you i’m gonna redo the previous chapter and update this fanfic òwó! look forward to it 


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